J Street welcomes the truce reached with Egyptian mediation between Israel and the Gaza Strip, praising the two sides for seeing “there is no military solution to their conflict” and saying the “awful bloodshed” had ended “without winners — only losers.”
In a statement released today, the organization’s president, Jeremy Ben-Ami, urges both parties to carry out their commitments so the ceasefire proves durable, allowing for “broader efforts to improve the lives of the Palestinian population of Gaza” while enabling Israelis to live without fear of terrorist attacks.
Jeremy Ben-Ami, J Street’s founder and director, speaking at the group’s 2012 conference. (photo credit: J Street)
“The ceasefire also offers an opportunity for the parties to urgently address the root causes of the violence including those at the very heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, including the occupation,” he says.
“That is why, once this war is behind us, Israel and the PLO must not merely settle for an illusory status quo, but instead work urgently toward a long-term political agreement that establishes two states, side-by-side in peace and security and an end to the underlying conflict and the occupation. This cease-fire is a beginning, but only a comprehensive two-state solution can bring an end to the suffering we have witnessed,” he adds.
“Without doing so, we are likely to see Hamas come back stronger and with better weapons.”
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
